


Honeypot Missions Aren’t So Sweet

by redlionspride



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: A job, Aftermath of Violence, Book of Nile, Booker's a bit slow, But so is Nile, Character Death, F/M, Fluff, Honeypot, Joe nd Nicky give Help, M/M, but that' part of the fandom, unsupervised use of google translate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:20:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26867302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redlionspride/pseuds/redlionspride
Summary: Nile, Booker, Joe and Nicky are on a Honeypot Mission, trying to extract intel from a woman about her husbands drug trafficking's. While Booker makes out with the Mark, Nile get unreasonably upset. Will things work out for the team?  Will Nile be forever mad at Booker?
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Nile Freeman, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 16
Kudos: 128





	Honeypot Missions Aren’t So Sweet

**Author's Note:**

> This was a promt fill for theoldguardkinkmeme
> 
> Prompt:  
> Booker/Nile - Honeypot Gone Bad  
> I'd love for pre-ship Nile and Booker.
> 
> Mission is a Honeypot and Booker is the one on the target. Nile is a bit jealous?
> 
> Things go badly in the mission maybe, and Feelings come out in the end!
> 
> Lots of feelings...
> 
> Link:  
> https://theoldguardkinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/4108.html?thread=1372172#cmt1372172

Seated in a hotel room, Nile waited impatiently for the bathroom door to open. Not because she needed it but because she needed who was inside of it to hurry up and come out. He had been in there for an hour now it seemed. 

Nile, dressed in a simple black dress with a mini white leather crop coat, laid back on the bed, among the laptop and files and phone and guns, stretching out with her arms over her head. 

“Booker! If you don’t hurry up you’ll miss her!” 

“ _La perfection prend du temps, ma chère!_ ” He called back in French through the bathroom door. 

“In English, please!” She called back to him as she lounged impatiently on the bed, rereading the file on Bookers computer. It had only been five years since she turned immortal, but Nicky and Joe had insisted on teaching her Italian first. Russian from Andy when Andy was around, and a small amount of French from Booker now that HE was around. The probation had been lifted once he had brought Quynh back to the group. (The events of that matter is, however, another story entirely). 

The bathroom door opened and out came Booker, dressed in a simple black suit and a nice pink shirt and dark pink tie under it. Nicky had helped him pick it out, or else Booker might have worn something a bit more casual. 

“I said, perfection takes time.” He was fixing his cufflinks, a nice touch to the suit. His hair was long on top still, but slicked back over the buzzed back side. It suited him, but Nile wanted to reach out desperately to mess it up. 

“Then go back in there and keep working on it.” Nile said in a teasing tone as she sat up on the bed. 

“Ouch, I’m wounded.” Booker said with a huffed laugh and shook his head, knowing she didn’t mean it. His hands came out to his sides and he gave a small ta-dah pose. “How do I really look?”

Nile had to restrain her comments for a moment. She wanted to say something bratty, but as she looked at him, she rolled to her feet, hands smoothing out her dress, and came over to stand in front of him. Her hand reached up to fix his tie gingerly.

“You look fine. Is this what took an hour in there? Trying to look good? You’re already ridiculously good with the ladies, she’ll be a fool if she passes you up.” Nile said it in a calm tone, not looking him in the face as she adjusted and finished with his tie. 

“Why Nile, that’s high praise coming from you.” 

_’He’s very good with men too.’_ The soft voice of Nicky chirped in her ear, making her roll her eyes.

“Yes Falcon, we know.” Nile said and shook her head, remembering she was still on coms with Nicky and Joe. 

“What did Nicky say?” Booker asked, an amused smile on his face, his hand reaching up to pull his tie a bit more loose, but not too loose. 

“That you look like a monkey.” 

_’Liar’_. Nicky said in her ear with a laugh. She could hear Joe in the background saying _’He does look like a monkey, Nicolo.’_ Which made her smile.

Then Booker reached for her ear, taking the ear piece out and holding it near his ear, ignoring Nile’s protest of ‘hey!’. “I take it you have eyes on us, Falcon?” 

_’Eyes and Ears are up and running.’_ Meaning he had his scope out and kept an eye on them through the open window, but also keeping an eye out for their target of the night. It also meant that Eagle, Joe, had them wired and taping. _’And I did not say you looked like a monkey. That suit looks fetching on you. Don’t forget to complement Nile’s dress.’_

Booker lifted a brow at that, looking at Nile, then looking to the window. _”Why?”_

Nile didn’t hear what Nicky said, but she reached out for her earpiece and grabbed it. “Alright, alright. Get your own off the nightstand, Rook.” She said, using his call sign and putting her piece back in her ear. She pulled her hair out of the bun on top of her head, letting thin braids tumble down her shoulder, covering her ear to the one side and hiding the earpiece. 

“Yes, Lil’ Sparrow.” Booker said, giving her a smirk and moving to collect his earpiece and putting it in. After a test check with Eagle Ears Joe he gave a wave to the window and looked back to Nile. “Ready?” 

Nile wished Andy were here, but with her new Mortality she and Quynh were out spending as much time together as possible, catching up, leaving the four of them to pull missions and money from Copley from time to time. 

Tonight was a Honeypot Mission, much to Nile’s displeasure. “Almost.” She grabbed a file from the bed, pulling up the picture of their target. A red head with voluptuous breasts dressed in a skin tight green dress and drinking a fruity drink. It was a candid picture, taken from across a bar. She could give Jessica Rabbit a run for her money. “Remember who we’re here to pick up. No side tracking this time.” 

“Last time wasn’t my fault. I was given bad intel.” 

“Bullshit, you got bored.” 

“I may have gotten bored, but in my defense I did honestly think he was the subject. One frat boy looks like all the others, _ma chère_.” 

_’We figured it out in the end.’_ Nicky said on the coms, sounding amused by the two of them. 

“We did. But I promise, Sparrow, I won't get distracted. After all, how many beautiful things are actually going to be in the bar tonight?” Booker said thoughtlessly, fixing his coat and not looking at Nile as she seemed to bristle a bit. 

_’You should think before you speak, my friend.’_ Nicky said softly in both their coms. 

Booker looked up and to the window, a raised brow and confused look. 

Nile huffed and moved to the bed, grabbing her side arm a bit more harshly than she meant to. “Don’t forget. _I’ll_ be in there as well. I should be in sight if you need me, Rook. Just remember the target.” 

Booker silently winced watching her, her back to him. He made a helpless shrug to the window, to which a soft ‘tch’ sound came back. Strike one. “I’ll be on my way. See you down there, Nile.” 

He moved for the door, opened it and paused, leaning back in a bit to say, “I love that dress on you, by the way. Did Nicky pick it out too?” he said smoothly. 

Nile paused, tucking her gun in her back holster, frowning at him. “No. I am able to dress myself, Booker.” She frowned at him. 

He frowned back, feeling like he did something wrong, but then smiled and saluted her. “Ah, well, it suits your curves.” And he left, closing the door. 

Standing there with her cheeks burning, she shot a glance out the window and pointed a finger sternly. “Not a word.” 

\-----

Angelia Bartonella showed up right at her normal time, her driver dropping her off at the front of the hotel, and her skin tight black dress tonight, as tight as ever. Her red flowing hair was pulled up in a French bun this time, and her heels were impossibly tall, making her almost as tall as Booker was. 

She entered the establishment, took the stairs to the left down a short ways to the bar, and slipped in to the counter, greeting the bartender as she always did; with a nose turned up and a request for a Passion Fruit Martini. 

Nile was leaning on a tall table, nursing an Old Fashioned and watching Booker carefully. He was at the counter, finishing his first Whiskey, knocking it back as the mark came in. He slid over to the counter, smiling sweetly to the woman. 

It was clear she was used to being hit on, but when he offered to buy her drink, she perked up a bit. Of course she did. 

Nile watched as they struck up a conversation. She could hear everything they said, which was the point. They needed to smoose a bit, get her talking. Find out what she knew. Copley had set them up with a line to a drug ring that used young women to carry drugs across the border, generally while carrying a bundle wrapped baby with the drugs. 

They unfortunately needed more information and this was the closest they could get to Martin Bartonella. His wife. His very often cheating wife. His cheating wife who was currently flirting up a storm with Booker. 

The man barely had to do any work. Throw a bit of a thicker accent in, toss in a few French words, and she was practically eating out of his hands. 

Nile hated it. 

She wasn’t even sure why she hated it. It really bothered her though, to sit back and watch Booker flirt with some pretty woman on a mission like this. 

_’What’s wrong, habibi?’_ It was Joe in her ear. A calm and careful tone.. 

“Nothing. He’s doing well. She seems to be falling for his so-called charms, hook line and sinker.” Nile said with a roll of her eyes. What a vapid bimbo. Was that really something that Booker found easy to work with? Something he found… beautiful? 

The only beautiful woman in the bar, huh? What a Jackass. 

_’We’re getting a lot on this end, but not what we need. She’s a talker.’_ Which was frustrating in it’s own right. 

Over the com she could just hear Booker charmingly mention that his business partner had canceled plans for the night, so he had a room here all alone and no business to conduct. The woman fell for it like a sucker. A very desperate sucker. 

Nile wasn’t at ALL impressed. 

“At least she’s an easy target.” She said to Joe and Nicky. 

_’That she is.’_ Nicky said calmly, then softly added. _’He is only acting, Tesoro. He is good at this kind of mission.’_

“Yeah, yeah, I know. But apparently he’s not good enough to get her to talk here.” 

Booker shot her a half glared glance at that while the woman sipped her drink back. Booker had just offered to take her to his room and she agreed. He turned back with a smile and offered her his arm, leading her to an elevator. They had a second room, just in case of this. A contingency plan, if the schmoozing didn’t work out. 

_’Bets on how long this will take.’_ Nicky said softly over the coms. 

“What? No way. I’m not betting on this.” Nile said uneasily, finishing her drink and standing up as well now. 

_’A hour.’_ Joe said smoothly. 

_’Twenty minutes. He looks good in that suit.’_ Nicky said smoothly in return. She could picture him taking out a wad of money and tossing it on a table. 

“Two hours, because he’s going to fuck this up.” Nile said darkly, walking off to an elevator now herself and going back up to the connected room beside that of which Booker and his target were. 

\-----

Nile had changed from the dress and cropped jacket to a pair of fitted jeans and a red tank top with the white leather cropped jacket. She rather liked this little accessory. She had her holster on under it, and bent her arm back to holster her gun once more. 

She paced the room, walking in sneakers around and about, talking to Joe or Nicky off and on. 

At the 20 minute mark she heard a sad sigh from Nicky, and a laugh from Joe. At the hour mark she heard Joe groan, and complain that Booker was taking his damn time. 

At the two hour mark, there was the sound of heavy panting and kissing coming from the com now, and Nile ripped the ear piece out and rubbed her forehead, going to pour herself another drink.

Frustrated and not even sure why, she threw back the shot and-- heard chatter on the com in her hand. Putting it back in she whispered. “What did I miss?” 

_’He got it.’_

No. 

No, how did she miss the important part. 

_’And at the two hour mark. You’re a thousand richer, habibi.’_

“Great. At least something good came out of this.” So why didn’t she feel good about it? “Where’s the payload?” She asked and heard Joe repeat the location. “Okay, I’ll meet you at the van in five. Booker, get your ass out of there, we’re on the move.” 

_’His com is down. He pocketed it when she started to play with his ears.’_ Nicky said, clearly having had a line of sight on the man. 

“Fine, we’ll… wait for him to make his escape. He must know he got what we needed.” She said, packing the room again. 

_’She said they were moving them tonight. Sparrow, we need to move asap.’_ Joe said swiftly. It was clear they were already on the move from their rooftop location. 

“Fine. We leave without him. The three of us can handle the job. Falcon you drive, Eagle, I’m with you. Let’s get going.” 

She grabbed her pack and left Bookers here with the hotel room. They’d be back when they were done to pick him up. He could have his fling and good time if he wanted. She didn’t want to hear it, so the sooner she was with the other two boys, the better. The coms could be changed or turned off. 

Booker would be fine. After all, their target had an address now. A location where the women and children were being held. 

On her way out of the hotel room, she walked past the elevator, hitting the button, making sure it came up, and dropped her bag down so it wouldn’t close. She then backed up to the door that Booker was in, and in a moment of childishness, she bannged on the door three times and ran back to the elevator. Grabbing her bag and ducking into it. 

She swiftly left the elevator, walked out of the hotel and towards where the van was stashed across the street. Nicky already had her warmed up, and Joe was in the passenger set. She moved to the back, opened the door, hopped in and banged it shut. 

“Are we in the clear?” She asked, moving to crouch between the front seats, taking a knee. 

“So far so good. We know where the kids are. Are you sure you want to leave without Booker.” Nicky said once more, ready to take off either way. 

“Yeah. Let him have his fun.” She rolled her eyes hard, moving back to take a seat in the back of the van, arms crossing. 

Nicky looked at her in the rearview mirror and spoke an affirmative in Italian. As they sped off, Joe looked back to Nile. “Are you alright?” 

She raised a brow. “That’s the second time you’ve asked me that. I’m fine. We got what we were looking for. So, where’s my money?” 

Nicky grinned so largely it could be seen in the mirror. “I told you she wouldn’t forget.” Joe passed Nicky a folded bill, then leaned back to pass Nile her money as well. 

“I am super out of luck today.” He said and sat back in his seat, not asking if she was alright again. This team and betting… go figure. 

\-----

The knock at the door had made Booker pause, sighing in the most French sigh he could manage. “I didn’t order room service.” He called, but asked Angelia to give him a moment to see who it was. 

There was no one at the door, so he closed the door, taking a moment to tap at the connecting suit door, just in case it was Nile. He knew he got the intel, he just needed to find the right time to excuse himself from the hotel. 

Returning to her side he smiled. “Now, where were we?” He smoozed, wondering what was taking so long with this. He tapped his pocket, three times. A notice for extraction. Anything. But there was no reply. 

He kissed the woman, as she drove back into making out with him, tossing his hair, practically ripping his coat off him and leaving lipstick marks all over his lip and cheeks and neck. 

Honestly, it wasn’t a bad job. He got her talking. Got her thinking about her husband. About all the gifts he brings but none of the romance that should come with it. About how she felt left alone and abandoned to him. About how he was working in the shipyard tonight, on another nefarious job that didn’t include her. There was a lot she complained about, for over two hours. 

All while making out with him. 

He really didn’t mind that part. It was kind of nice to be able to hold a beautiful woman and kiss her as passionately as he wanted. But he was also growing impatient. 

More so when the door got pounded on once more. That HAD to be Nile about to get him out of there. “What NOW?” He played it up, sounding annoyed, and moving to the door. Flinging it open, he was expecting Nile to be there in a servant's coat or something. But instead it was a brute of a man, in a suit, and pulling a gun on him. 

“Room service.” The man said, and shoved his way in with Booker backing up. 

“Hey, pal, I think you have the wrong room?” Booker started but was practically cut off by a yell from the woman. 

“Brutus! What are you doing here?!” She cried out, pulling her dress down and fixing it in a hurry. 

“Brutus? Of course his name is Brutus.” Booker said as flatly as possible, moving back a bit more. “Now listen here, Brutus. We don’t want no trouble from you. This was clearly a misunderstanding.” 

The big man swiped the gun at Bookers head, but Booker grabbed it and twisted it out of the big guy’s grip, turning it around on him and pointing it at the big man. He didn’t hesitate, and two shots took Brutus down to the ground. 

Angelia screamed, flailing her arms. “You killed him!” She yelled, and flung a pillow at Booker, which he ducked but missed as the shoe hit him in the shoulder. 

While this was going on, a dark figure at the door stood there, pulled a gun and shot Booker in the side of the head. 

“ _Merde..._ ” He had just cursed as he saw the figure in his peripheral vision. The bullet going in one side and out the other, splattering blood on Angela, who screamed yet again. 

Three more silenced shots were put into Booker's body, just for good measure. 

\-----

They reached the shipyard thirty minutes later, and the three of them went in, dressed all in black now, hoods up, guns, swords and daggers ready. 

The first guard didn’t see it coming, the scimitar sliding in his chest and out so easily, like butter. A spray of blood shooting out of the man. Nicky was beside him, taking out the second guard much in the same way. 

Nile had a long fighting dagger in one hand and a gun in the other, moving silently along with her boys. They wanted to stealth move as long as possible before letting a shot off. Silently she pointed to Nicky and pointed up to a crane. She nodded and took off running to get the high ground, his rifle hanging from his back. 

Joe and Nile took off for another guard. Joe gave Nile a bow and waved her on as if to say ‘after you’ and Nile smiled, turned the knife in her hand downward, and slipped up behind the guard, lodging it into his neck and pulling sideways. 

Nile wasn’t the same type of killer as Andy had been. There was a difference in how she was learning from everyone. It had only been five years and she certainly was taking training for everyone possible. 

These men were killers. Child murders. Mothers were forced to drug run for them. She had no faith in these people, and so she took her training seriously as she slit the man's throat. 

As the body dropped to the ground there was a shout from someone else. Nicky had gotten a line of sight and the first gun shot was heard. Time to play with firearms. 

Joe and Nile rushed forward, diving into several guards and taking pot shots at them. One guard rounded a corner and started to shoot at the two of them, catching Nile in the shoulder, the chest and leg. Catching Joe in the head and gut. They dropped swiftly, though years of training taught them to hold their guns as they fell. 

The guards yelled that there was a sniper, just as Nicky took out another one. 

Joe got up first, scaring one guard that was checking on him, a sword going through his gut. Nile rolled to her knee as she got up, shot at a retreating guard, then sprinted off after him, shooting him down in ease. 

The slaughter went on for another five minutes. Nicky watched two guards run out of a carrier, seeing a scared woman with children backing up into it. “I have the targets.” And relayed directions to the other two. 

In 20 minutes the area was cleared, the women and babies were escorted, crying about the bloody mess, to the van, and they were loaded up. Nicky was down from his tower, Nile and Joe exchanged glances and sighed. 

“I was hoping to get through it without ruining my clothing again.” Nile said with a dramatic sigh, looking down at the hole in her shirt. 

“At least you took the white jacket off.” Joe shrugged and moved on. 

It took them one more hour to get all the women and children safe and to their checkpoint with Copley. They had learned that though they had found the missing people, that Bartonella had gone missing from their sights. They weren’t at all sure what happened to him, other than maybe he got wind of it and ran. 

Bartonella had not been on sight, and thus got away free. 

\-----

While Martin Bartonella argued with his wife, yelling at her in Spanish and calling her a two bit whore, the other side of the room held two bleeding bodies. Two bodies Bartonella didn’t seem to care about. 

One was Brutus, the big brute of a guard, who Booker shot down before he could be shot. And the other was Booker, slowly healing and sucking in a breath before a bullet fell from his skull. “I hate headshots.” He mumbled to himself, moving to grab a gun off the floor and move. Martin Bartonella was about to go down. 

But Angela screamed bloody murder as she saw Booker moving, throwing her other shoe at him and pegging him in the face this time. He shot off two shots at Bartonella but received three in return. 

When he woke up again he was tied to a chair, his head lulling down, his eyes blinking open slowly. Well, that sucked. THIS sucked. He hated when they got wise to the healing thing and tied him down. Not that it happened often but it always happened at some point or another. Generally those who do it end up dead, like this guy was going to.

Booker lifted his head, sighing at the fact that his suit was ruined, again. They went through so much nice clothing like this.

“Ah, you’re awake.” Bartonella said, moving into his line of sight. “What _are_ you?” He asked in a quizzical tone. 

“Your worst nightmares. That’s what I should be saying, right? That’s how this works? You think you’ll have nightmares when I’m done with --” shot again, silenced still, and right in the chest. Point blank. 

Booker cursed. “Fils de pute!”

The man ripped his shirt back, watching as the bullet was rejected and the wound closed up slowly. “Amazing. Truly amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it.” 

“And you won't see anything like it again.” Booker grunted, healing once more. He was going to kill this man. 

Though Bartonella had his time to shine, a knife pulled out and stuck into his ribs had done a lot of blood letting, and the fact that he stuck it into him several times after didn’t help.

It was going to be a long night. 

\-----

“Fucking Booker.” 

“He’ll be fine. They’re probably basking in the afterglow of--” Joe ribbed Nicky to shut him up. Nicky looked curiously at Joe, who shot Nile a hard glance. Oh. 

“You seem upset, habibi.” Joe said calmly, carrying a sack of food with him. They had stopped for Chinese for the four of them. Booker included, if he decided to finish with his evening and come join them. Joe assumed he’d be back in the hotel room by now, but as they got to the room it was empty. 

Nile sighed darkly, rolling her eyes and kicking her shoes off, putting her piece to the night stand and started to peel out of her coat. 

They each had put on their coats to hide the bloody clothing under it all. 

Joe put the Chinese food down and moved to change as well. Nicky opened his mouth first. “Told you he was basking.” But he at least said it softly to Joe only, who sighed and gave a shrug, glancing to Nile. 

Nile was headed to the bathroom, stripping her shirt off and dropping it on the ground for now. “It’s not like it matters what he does now.” Ah, she had heard Nicky. “Jobs over. Let him have his fun. I’ll be right back.” 

Nicky, not shot up this time, sat at a desk and opened food, pulling out a box of to go for him, and a set of chopsticks. He broke them in half and started to poke at the noodles inside, leaning back in his chair.

His eye catching a strange sight at the center sliding door. A spot of red that was growing from the other side of the door. “Uh, Joe?” He called out, moving to stand now. 

\-----

On the very other side of the thick center door, the brute of a guard lay bleeding. 

Booker was waking up again, but still bleeding, a knife between his ribs and everything. He winced, trying to force his body to push it out. No go.

The ties around his body were around the chair as well, looped around the bottom and keeping his arms tied down. It should be easy to break out of, so long as he gets a minute. It was going to hurt, but his entire existence hurt right now. 

Lifting his head he saw Bartonella and another thug of his talking by the bar. He calculated that he'd have just enough time to do what he needed before he’d die again. Maybe he’d come back before they could tie him down again. 

Rocking in the chair he moved it back and forth, wiggling it. Wood. That was good. He rocked back, then forward, tipping to his feet a bit. Then he jumped backwards, throwing himself to the ground, smashing the back legs into the ground and snapping them. 

Just as he expected, the noise got their attention, but he got his arms loose from the broken chair, wriggling out of it as best he could. The knife in his ribs seemed to shoot fire down his body as it jarred, jutting out of his body and causing him to bleed more. 

Yanking it out of his ribs he sat up, flinging the knife at the guard, hitting him in the chest before he could get a shot off. 

He dove behind the couch, hearing silenced bullets hitting it and through. He pulled his other arm free, grabbed a chair leg and flung it over the couch, aim for Mr. Bartonella. 

Just then the side door slid open, Nile diving into the wall, Joe after her. Just in time for them to see Booker take a shot through the couch and into an arm. A second silenced shot sliced through his neck. 

“ _Booker!_ ” That was Nile, ignoring the shooter as she dove across the room to his side. She didn’t need to worry about the shooter, because Joe had stepped forward at the same time, silencer on his own gun, taking four shots. 

Gun hand. (he dropped the gun with a yelp).

Shoulder. (Her jerked back with this hit, gasping). 

Hip. (He was thrown the other way, shock setting in on his face). 

Knee. (He tumbled to the floor, crying out in pain). 

Each shot was well placed, looking to distribute the most pain the man could feel, while keeping him somewhat alive. Each alternated on one side of the other of his body, dropping him instantly. Joe moved over, kicking the gun away and tisked. “Ah-ah. You shouldn’t have shot my friend.” 

Nile had dropped to Booker’s side, rolling him over to his back, her gun dropped beside them. Her hands reaching for his bleeding throat It looked almost like how she first died. Her hands shook, staring down at him as he gurgled blood. 

“Okay. Come on Sebastien. Time to heal. Get your ass up.” She whispered almost frantically to him. Why was it taking so long. WAS it taking long? She felt like time was running slow. Her hands shaking, moved to hold his face, looking down at murky blue eyes and frowning at him. “That’s enough of this.” She said then whispered. “I need you to be okay.” 

He sputtered and coughed, turning his head a bit into her hand. The wound on his throat closed up slowly. Aas his vocal cords healed he muttered. “I hate seeing you frown like that, _mon amour_.” 

My love? She groaned, thinking he was teasing her. Her hands letting him go and her sitting up, looking across the room. “Jesus, this is a mess.” 

Booker groaned as she let him go, finishing up his healing on his own. 

Nile stood, looking at the complete mess in the room. “Well, I guess we got our target after all. Nice job, Joe.” 

“ _Joe!?_ ” Booker garbled, getting to his knee and spitting blood on the already soiled carpet. “I had him on the end of my gun.” 

Nicky was at the door, on the phone with Copley. He was going to have one hell of a mess to clean up, but the moaning man on the floor was their target, and he was still alive, so that was all that mattered. Copley could handle this. 

“Tie him up. Cover the wounds so he doesn’t bleed out too badly. Let’s get our shit and get out of here before anyone finds this. Copley can clean it up.” 

\-----

An hour later they were down the freeway, in a low budget motel. Joe thoughtfully requested two bedrooms for tonight. Nile raised a brow, as normally they all dog piled into one room, but then snorted. “Try not to wake the neighbors, hmm?” She teased Joe and Nicky, assuming they just wanted some time alone to fuck around. 

Joe smiled. “Ah, yes, that was the reason.” And mysteriously went inside to get two rooms. Nicky was off to the side, talking to Booker, animated with his hands. Nile looked at Booker, then to Nicky, seeing Nicky bop Booker in the top of the head for something he said. 

Nile rolled her eyes, arms crossed over her chest, and leaned on the van, waiting for Joe to return with the key. Room 204 and 206. “We’ll take 4.” She said and caught the key as Joe tossed it to her. “Honestly, I just want to use up all the hot water and go to bed. I’m fucking tired.” She complained. 

Joe snorted in amusement, reaching out to fluff the top of her head a bit, messing her braids. “You do that. But if anything else should happen, enjoy it, habibi.” 

They hauled luggage to their rooms, and Joe and Nicky bid them good night. She watched Joe chase Nicky inside and the door shut. She glanced at Booker who was putting out the last of a cigarette. 

“So, uh…” Booker started, his face almost flushed looking in this light. 

“I’m taking a shower.” Nile said flatly, and wandered in, moving to claim the bed nearest the shower. She threw her bag on the bed and unzipped it swiftly, with a bit of a rough pull. 

Booker came in and closed the door, dropping his bag off on the other bed. “Look, Nile…” He started, but she cut him off. 

“Jobs done, Booker. Time to relax.” 

“I’m trying to!” He said sternly, frowning at her as she kept up the attitude and cold shoulder. “Nile! You’re upset with me. I can see that.” 

“Upset?!” She said, as if she couldn’t believe he’d say such a thing. “I’m not upset. Not at all. What made you think that?” She crossed her arms, hip cocked to the side and brow raised. Clearly upset. 

“Literally everything about your tone, body language and stance say it, _mon cher_.” He pointed this out, and she frowned, throwing her arms down as if she hadn’t crossed them. She grabbed her toiletries bag and held it tight. 

“I’m not mad.” She said as calmly as possible. “I just wish you had a better night.” 

“Do you?” he asked, a smile forming for a moment. 

“After all, you had the most beautiful woman in the bar in your hot little hands for hours.” 

His smile dropped. He knew that was going to bite him in the ass. Even Nicky said so in his little pep talk outside. “Nile, that was just for the mission.” 

“The face sucking was just for the mission, hmm? You didn’t enjoy that at all, hmm?” Nile said, grabbing her PJs and turning to go set them in on the sink in the bathroom. “You know, either you’re a damn good actor or you really enjoyed that!” She called from the bathroom. 

He ran his hands over his face and looked to the door. Sleeping in the van might be safer. “I AM a damn good actor. But she was an easy target.” 

“Two hours, Booker! It took you two hours to get her to talk! Half that time you were making out with her.” 

“Maybe I was trying to win you that bet.” He countered just as sternly now. Walking to the bathroom door to talk to her here. She was pulling out a tooth brush and paste. “Don’t forget, I could HEAR that.” 

Her cheeks heated at that, eyes lifting and looking at him. “Yes, well…” What to say to that. “That’s a terrible way to win a bet.” 

Well, it was. 

“I said you looked good in that dress!” he pointed out, feeling flustered at this. Why was she like this? He thought they had a good thing going. But Nicky and Joe both had been pointing out that he was missing something. 

“You thought Nicky picked it out for me!” 

“Nothing wrong with that. The man has good fashion sense.” 

“Well so do I.” She jabbed her tooth brush into her mouth and started to brush fiercely. 

“You are not honestly mad at me because you think, I think you can’t dress yourself.” It wasn’t a question, and he stood there, arms crossing, blocking the doorway. “What’s actually bothering you?” 

“You are. Right now! I’m trying to brush my teeth.” She said around her tooth brush and… softened a bit. WHY was she mad at him? So what, he didn’t think she was beautiful. It didn’t matter to her. It didn’t mean anything. He was just a good actor. This was stupid. 

She slowed down her brushing, and side glanced at him. He was still standing there, seeming to wait for an answer. She turned on the water to spit toothpaste in annoyance. “What?” 

“What’s actually bothering you, _mon char_.” he repeated, his tone softer now. 

“I’m honestly not sure. I’m just… _mad_ at you.” She finally said, washing out her tooth brush and sitting it in a cup to dry. She didn’t look at him. 

And he noticed that too. He reached out and pulled to her arm, at her sleeve. “Nile, look at me.” He asked, very politely. 

She looked at him, one brow raised, pushing back falling braids. Another ‘what’ look, but she didn’t say it. 

He stepped in closer, letting his hand slide down her arm, reaching to take her hand, pull it to his other hand and hold it. He looked down, frowning. “I scared you today, didn’t I?” 

She huffed, rolling her eyes and looking away. But not pulling away. “You did not. I knew you’d be fine. I was just pissed you were… that you were…” 

“What? Shot? It’s part of our line of work.” 

“No!” She let out a growl, her hand tightened to his two holding her hands. “I’m mad that you were there alone. You should have been with the rest of us. You should have had back up. I made the wrong call and you ended up tortured for it.” She couldn’t look at him. 

He lifted one hand up, tilting her chin. Making her look up to him. “If I had gone with you, we never would have caught the actual target. As Nicky would say, it all happened for a reason. You did exactly what you should have.” What Andy would have done as well. “You’re a good leader, and an excellent partner to work with.” 

She frowned at him, feeling bad still. Was this what she was mad about? She had been mad at him before this though. Shit. Her hand tightened on his one hand holding it close. “I don’t just want to be a good leader.” She said thoughtlessly. She shouldn’t have said that out loud. 

“What do you want to be then?” He asked, still keeping her chin, making her look at him. “Talk to me.” 

She kind of glared at that point, her cheeks heated with blush. “Shut up, asshole. I don’t have to talk to you.” She said, trying to draw back. 

He held her hand tighter, and pulled her back towards him, leaning in closer, his breath warm at her cheek. “You like that I’m an asshole. I think you’re sweet on me.” 

She drew back her free hand and punched him in the chest. A hard hit, but not too hard to hurt. 

He still winced. 

“Ow. And now you’re beating me up? I can’t do anything right.” But he was smiling nonetheless, pulling her closer to him again. 

“Let go, idiot.” She said, more embarrassed than anything. She reached up to slug his chest again, but it was softer. Much softer. He pulled her again, looping an arm around her, keeping her close. “Dumb ass.” She insulted again and he just smiled more. 

“You know I don’t mind a fight.” He said, closer still. 

She hadn’t looked at him yet, face burning. “I’ll get you a proper fight, you know. I won't go easy on you.” She countered. 

“So tell me what’s bothering you already.” He said, looping his other arm around her. 

“Booker! You just spent the night kissing some bimbo that you thought was the most beautiful woman in the room. What do you think?” 

“Oh! Are you jealous?” 

“Oh. My god. Are you trying to start a fight?” She said, reaching back to grab his hands and push them back to him. He twisted his hands around to catch hers again, feeling her push. But he also saw her smile. 

“Maybe.” He hummed, and she shoved him by the hands, out of the bathroom. He pulled her with him, feeling her draw a fist back and slug him, faintly in the arm. He smirked, and ducked under her blind spot, grabbing her by the middle, rolling a shoulder and lifting her off the ground, up onto his shoulder. 

Nile laughed, loudly. Too loudly, her hand slapping over her mouth to cover it as she was picked up suddenly.

He moved to the center of the room, spinning her around. 

“You don’t want to do that, Booker!” She threatened fondly. Still giggling a bit. 

“Oh? Why?” 

“Because of this.” And she moved, nearly hitting the ceiling, but throwing her leg over his shoulder, curling under his arm, and throwing herself back, dropping them to the bed, but getting him in a leg lock a moment. He was half bent on the bed and floor. 

“Andy show you the one?” He said with an impressed tone. He patted her leg, calling “Uncle.” And she moved to let go. Though the moment he moved. He stood, he turned and tackled her to the bed, pinning her there a moment before he hovered over her. 

“When I called her the only Beautiful thing in the room. I meant that.” Nile glowered up at him, about to open her mouth to say something snarky to that, but he shh’ed her. “You’re not a _thing_.” He started, leaning over her. “You’re not a prize to be won. You’re not an item to be owned. You are not a mindless, vapid _thing_. Every woman in that bar was looking for something to fill their mindless needs. Every woman but you. You’re intelligent and beautiful, nay, gorgeous. You have a mind to you, and you're deadly. That is far more than ‘Beautiful’.” 

She closed her mouth. She stared at him for a long moment. 

Then she jolted forward, leaning up to catch his lips in a kiss. Almost a rough kiss; needy. If this isn’t where this was going, someone shoot her now, because she wanted this. 

Booker didn’t pull back though, he kept her pinned down to the bed and leaned down into the kiss, passionate and firm. Their lips parted, pushing the kiss a bit farther. She twisted her arms under him, reaching to pull at the polo shirt they had put him in to get him out of the bloody clothing. Pull at it and yank it up. She broke the kiss as she hauled his shirt off his body, letting it go wherever. 

“No one’s ever called me gorgeous before. Or Beautiful.” She generally got strong and stubborn and things went odd from there. 

“Fools, then.” He said, his hands roaming down her sides to pull at her shirt in return, yanking it up and leaning down to kiss her belly. “ _Magnifique, beau, élégant, divin._ ” He said in French, kissing his way up her belly and over the center strap of her bra. Removing her shirt as well. He moved to catch her lips again.

“Oh no.” She said, and rolled her hips, rocking a moment, then flipping them, getting him on his back on the bed and sitting on him, pinning his arms down and leaning over him. “None of the French talk. You save that for the vapid bimbos. Or at least another night. 

She moved, going to stand, and started to back away. “ _I’m_ going to go take my shower.” She said, and started to undo her pants button as she backed up. She ducked around into the bathroom, JUST catching his sad pouting look, like he just got left behind.

A moment later her bra flung out of the bathroom and to the floor. “Sebastien…?” She called, her pants flying out the door next. “You coming?” 

He stood, kicking shoes off and pulling at his belt, undoing his pants and letting those fall as he walked. “Just a second.” he said, coming around the corner to the bathroom door, pausing there shock still a moment, then he whistled at her, walking in and closing the door behind him. 

\-----

The next morning a knock came at their door. Nicky outside of it chirped. “You kids awake in there? Check out is in an hour.”

Nile groaned as she was woke up, stretching fully then curling up on her side in bed. Beside her a man reached over, felt around, grabbed one of Nile’s sneakers and chucked it at the door. “Go _away_ Nicky!” Booker groaned. 

“Oh, he’s so grumpy when he’s had no sleep.” Nicky said as he backed away from the door, whistling and nodding to Joe. 

Joe held his hand out for a wad of cash, smirking. “My luck has changed.” 

Nile curled into Bookers side, hand sliding over his belly, nose nuzzling his neck. “Five more minutes, then I’m taking a shower and packing.” 

“Need help?” He asked, curling his arm around her naked body. 

“Packing?” She asked, curiously. 

“Showering.” He said with a grin. She pinched him for his trouble. 

“Behave. We only have an hour.” 

“That’s plenty of time.” 

She laughed and moved to get up, pinching him again in the side. “You’re terrible.” And she stole the sheet, wrapped around her and wandered off to the bathroom. He watched her walk away and smiled, lying there, content and pleased. 

“Well, you coming?” He heard her say from the bathroom. 

Booker rolled out of bed, wide awake now. "Coming, _mon amour!_

Needless to say, forty seven minutes later they were dressed, packed and exiting their room with the keys.


End file.
